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Black Citadel and Temple
It is currently unclear if the Black Citadel and the Black Temple are one and the same, despite what has been said from Blizzard officials. More recent sources have provided further arguments against it, and the details of what has been retconned and what is in fact correct is very unclear. The following is an attempt to analyze the issue in an attempt to resolve it. Please discuss changes and thoughts on the talk page before making them. In Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, the building from which Magtheridon ruled was called the Black Citadel and was positioned near "Shadowmoon Ruins" in the "Mountains of Flame" north of Hellfire Peninsula on map of Outland. With the new map of Outland, it appears to be called the Black Temple and has been moved to Shadowmoon Valley (south of Hellfire Peninsula). The TFT map even contradicts the earliest map of Draenor seen in Warcraft II, where Shadowmoon is located south of Hellfire Peninsula. It is most likely that the Burning Crusade map was retconned in order to make it more accurate to the Warcraft II maps, and that the location of the temple along with Shadowmoon Ruins on the TFT map was moved south of the peninsula to its original location, with the Temple being the seat of power in Shadowmoon Valley. It is possible that "the Black Citadel" was what the people around Shadowmoon called it at one time. "Shadowmoon Ruins" were likely intended to be the ruins of the Shadowmoon Clan's settlemtns in Shadowmoon Valley, which was originally south of Hellfire Peninsula according to Warcraft II's maps. In that map, the Shadowmoon Clan's territory, the eponymous Shadowmoon Valley, is located in the southern regions of the continent south of Hellfire Peninsula. Alternatively they might have intended to be the ruins of the Fortress Shadowmoon which were reduced to ruins during the Warcraft II expansion pack's story. In the Shadows & Light, 2004, the "Black Citadel" is refrenced, and its its location is implied to be on the Hellfire Peninsula. Outland and the description of fortress is clearly described how it was in The Frozen Throne campaign. "Illidan the Betrayer stands as the lord of Outland and rules his domain from a massive, black iron ziggurat. Ner'zhul was originally responsible for this hulking edifice, but now blood elves, naga, and illidan's few other allies roam its corridors. The naga live in underground sewers, and the upper levels teem with blood elves, traps, evil and death. Rumors tell that beneath the citadel sprawls a great prison, trapped within are heroes from previous wars, languishing in unknown solitude." "Hellfire Peninsula. This great tract of land spreads before the distant Black Citadel." In World of Warcraft The Roleplaying Game, 2005, it discusses the Black Citadel, but does not mention its exact location; Illidan the Betrayer stands as the nominal head of Outland, ruling from a fortress called the Black Citadel. However Rise of the Horde, 2006, claims that the draenei Temple of Karabor was clearly renamed the Black Temple, after being called Karabor. Which implies that it never changed names since then. In Monster Guide, 2007, it is confirmed that the building Illidan's forces attacked and took from Magtheridon was known as the Black Citadel. Although its unknown what structure in which location its in refrence to. "This group of blood elves then helped defeat Magtheridon and claimed his Black Citadel as their own." To make matters even more confusing, the official World of Warcraft Underdevelopment page, claims that the Black Temple was the; "...prime staging ground for the Burning Legion's campaign of destruction...http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/underdev/" The prime staging ground for the Burning Legion from Outland in The Frozen Throne was clearly established to be located in the Black Citadel during the campaigns. Architectural Comparisons It should be noted that the four structures often argued as being part of the history of the Black Temple do not always match up when comparing the architectural styles used in each of the games. It adds further confusion to which structure is which, and even if they are connected at all. Hellfire Citadel In The Burning Crusade it looks more like Horde fortress of Warcraft III, with some similarities to horde barracks in Warcraft II. Black Citadel A series of about three black iron and stone ziggurats built above ground. Underneath the ground included aquaducts sewers, black columns, and stone arches, and statues. Fortress Shadowmoon Traditional Warcraft II style horde fortress. It is described in the game's story as having towering spires like obsidian blades reaching into the skies. Black Temple A series of steps leading to a series of walls, and platforms surrounding a ziggurat/pyramid. It shares a distinctly draenei aesthetic style, although it has darkened since it was first built. Fan Interpretation A few prevailing assumptions exist by various fans. One is that the Black Citadel is in fact Hellfire Citadel, and that the Black Temple, formerly known as the Temple of Karabor , is a separate structure. In another camp of fans, Black Citadel and Black Temple are seen to be the same structure, with the Hellfire Citadel seen as a seperate structure. Additionally, some believe Fortress Shadowmoon somehow survived its destruction in Warcraft II, and is the same fortress as the Black Temple, mentioned in the Underdev page. While there are some fans that believe the Shadowmoon Ruins in Warcraft III maybe a refrence to the ruins of the Shadowmoon Fortress, or at least ruins representing ruins in Shadowmoon Valley.